Contest Judging

nmayeux

nmayeux

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Ok... I finally judged my first contest this weekend at the Sam's Club contest in Marietta, GA. I knew that I was going to learn from the experience, but I had no idea how much fun it was going to be, or the wealth of knowledge that was at hand. Thanks to Dave of Uncle Bud's BBQ for mentoring, and thanks to all the experienced judges that spent time with me.

A couple of lessons learned:

1. Mistakes are really apparent, especially in presentation.
2. You can really taste bitter smoke. I was surprised as to the difference in flavors.
3. Judges are a whole different breed. Most of the judges that I met had never cooked in competition, and had a completely different view of the entries compared to my views.
4. Judging will help any cook, and cooking will help any judge. I am now a firm believer, and happy with the proposed cook requirements for Master Judges.
5. I am now comfortable that judges are as concerned as competitors about accurate judging. It is heartwarming to know the level of accountablility that the judges I met assume. They weren't just there to eat.

I enjoyed going to a contest and not having the stress of being a cook, but I did have the nagging feeling that I should have been competing... Anyway, I am looking forward to my next contest, be it judging or competing.
 
It certainly sounds like you enjoyed it. I keep saying that I have to give it a try on of these days.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
 
I'm going to compete for the first time this year, so last year I judged all the local contests to get a insight of what they were looking for. I know some cooks show up and cook their best but it's not what the judging criteria calls for so I wanted that "inside" information before I started cooking and I know it has helped me.
 
Congrats Noah :-D.

I'm a firm believer that judges should cook more and that cooks should judge more - just to see what happens on thee other side of the turn-in table. Everyone has their preconceived ideas on how the "other side" does things. Most of the time those ideas aren't even close to what really happens.

Thanx for finding out on your own and a double thanx for posting your experiences.
 
I am judging my first contest later this month.

I hope to be able to get 1/2 as much out of it is you did.
 
note to new judges if you give an entry a 5 on taste, please fill out a comment card. If the table captain and rep asks you to fill out a card because of your scores, please do so, those cook teams that slept in a parking lot will certainly appreciate the effort.
 
DawgPhan said:
note to new judges if you give an entry a 5 on taste, please fill out a comment card. If the table captain and rep asks you to fill out a card because of your scores, please do so, those cook teams that slept in a parking lot will certainly appreciate the effort.
Click to expand...


I'm a FIRM believer that EVERY judge giving a "6" and below should be required to fill out a comment card with USEFULL information! I filled out a comment card last Saturday for an "8" as the brisket slice was clearly a "9", but the BE they included was horrible (tough and bitter)! The cooks DESERVE to know when something like that happens! IMHO!
 
I was always a believer in comment cards, as I appreciate any insight into my turn-ins. I would give a card for a 6 though...
 
Noah,
So wonderful to read this thread - your great experience and clear straight forward explanations.

Keep on cookin', keep on judgin' and please keep posting about your experiences.
Thanks.
 
nmayeux said:
I was always a believer in comment cards, as I appreciate any insight into my turn-ins. I would give a card for a 6 though...
Click to expand...
Sat. I filled out cards for 2 "5"'s and a "6". Each score was for tenderness. The entries looked great and tasted awesome but tough as hell. I have a feeling the cooks would have known that their meat was not tender...but just in case...they got the card.
 
Comment cards should be mandatory for scores below a certain threshold. I've read the argument that if that was the case, judges would just avoid giving those scores altogether to avoid the "hassle" of a comment card. If this is true then those are judges that KCBS (or any sanctioning body) really should avoid.

Bottom line...don't put down a score that you aren't willing to justify or explain with a comment card if requested by the Rep.
 
cdkeach said:
Comment cards should be mandatory for scores below a certain threshold. I've read the argument that if that was the case, judges would just avoid giving those scores altogether to avoid the "hassle" of a comment card. If this is true then those are judges that KCBS (or any sanctioning body) really should avoid.

Bottom line...don't put down a score that you aren't willing to justify or explain with a comment card if requested by the Rep.
Click to expand...

I agree but here's the weird thing.....I have judged 8 of the last 10 or so weekends with 4 different sets of contest reps.

Most of them strongly suggest the use of cards for 6 or lower but I had one who was emphasizing that cards are totally optional and a judge didn't have to give one no matter what the score was!

I think we need to get the contest reps on the same page!!!

Dave
 
Uncle Buds BBQ said:
I agree but here's the weird thing.....I have judged 8 of the last 10 or so weekends with 4 different sets of contest reps.

Most of them strongly suggest the use of cards for 6 or lower but I had one who was emphasizing that cards are totally optional and a judge didn't have to give one no matter what the score was!

I think we need to get the contest reps on the same page!!!

Dave
Click to expand...


the rep emphasizing that you didnt have to do it wasn't this past weekend, was it?
 
The rep at Marietta this weekend told me he had a judge give a 4 in tenderness for ribs. He asked the judge to fill out a comment card and the judge said they didn't want to.

It appears there were a number of 5's & 6's given out at Marietta. I wonder how many comment cards were filled out.
 
Pigs on Fire said:
The rep at Marietta this weekend told me he had a judge give a 4 in tenderness for ribs. He asked the judge to fill out a comment card and the judge said they didn't want to.

It appears there were a number of 5's & 6's given out at Marietta. I wonder how many comment cards were filled out.
Click to expand...

That judge would never be asked to return to any contest where I am part of the organizing team. Any legal score is acceptable, but refusing to explain the mark is not. Had I been there I would have told the Rep we needed to replace this person before the next category hit the table.

:mad2:
 
My wife and I have judged for the last two years and are just now starting to cook on our own. I have cooked with a team a few times and she has cooked once to qualify for her master judge. To date we have judged 24 contests each.

In talking to some of the teams we have been around as cooks and judges, and some of the experienced judges, it seems a common coment that maybe new judges cook with a team in their first five contests to see what really goes on on the other side of the turn in table.
 
2 items to discuss here.

First, CivilWarBBQ. I agree that the rep should have tried to replace a judge who gave a 4 and wouldn't explain it. But the judge did not have to fill out a comment card, just explain to the rep why they gave the score. Then the rep needed to act. But the organizer should never be involved in the judging process. Once judging starts its up to the reps. An organizer can talk to reps after the judging is complete and see if there were issues and the rep may say yes and here's the name of the judge. Then next year the organizer can not let the person judge.

Second, New Pal Frank and all others. While I think it's good for judges to learn what cooks do I do not think how much work cooks do and how much money cooks spend should in any way influence how judges score. Cooks should be rewarded for excellence not for trying or working hard.
 
Ford I agree with you that the organizer shouldn't be involved in the judging process, specifically from the time the turn-in window starts on chicken until it closes on brisket.

What I do feel the organizers should do is scrutinize judges' applications to where it's a job interview. Why? Because this is what will make a good contest bump up to a spectacular contest. This allows the organizer to choose the best judges he/she can get based on experience. And the organizer can step up at the cooks meeting on Friday and tell the cooks they have done their best to get the best judges by ____________ (explain the process they went through).

The organizers have got to start realizing what will make competition BBQ even better. It's not that the cooks are complaining. We just want it to get bigger and better. And better isn't always some high-profile contest and/or organizer yammering about how much the purse is.
 
Ford said:
While I think it's good for judges to learn what cooks do I do not think how much work cooks do and how much money cooks spend should in any way influence how judges score. Cooks should be rewarded for excellence not for trying or working hard.
Click to expand...
The amount of work shouldn't play a part, but understanding and respect does. In a court of law, don't most judges start as lawyers? And sharing experience should always be a good thing. It leads to consistancy.
 
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